Disinfect Water With Household Items

As unlikely as this may sound, you can actually disinfect your drinking water safely and effectively with common household chemicals. Just be aware that chemical disinfection doesn’t remove salt, toxins or fallout – it just kills the living pathogens that would make you sick.

CHLORINE BLEACH Add 2-4 drops of ordinary chlorine bleach (5.25% to 6% sodium hypochlorite) per liter of water. Use 2 drops if the water is warm and clear. Go to 4 drops if it is very cold or murky. Put the bottle lid back on, and shake the container. Then turn the bottle upside down, and unscrew the cap a turn, or two. Let a small amount of water flow out to clean the bottle threads and cap. Screw the lid back on tight, and wipe the exterior of the bottle to disinfect all surfaces. Let it sit for 1 hour in a dark place before drinking.

TINCTURE OF IODINE Use 5 to 10 drops of Tincture of iodine 2%, in one liter of water. Flush the threads, wipe down the bottle, and allow it to sit in the shade 1 hour as mentioned with chlorine. Use 5 drops tincture of iodine for clear warm water, and up to 10 drops for cold or cloudy water.

POVIDONE IODINE You’ll need 8 to 16 drops per quart of water with this form of iodine, commonly sold by the brand name Betadine. Add 8 drops for nice looking water, and 16 drops for swamp water. Clean the bottle threads, and wait an hour, as with the other methods.

Tim MacWelch

Hone your basic outdoor and survival skills with help from qualified and experienced survival pro, Tim MacWelch. Each week Tim hands out priceless information on everything from essential gear to wound care, primitive hunting and fishing traps to cooking over hot stones and much more. Don’t rely on basic human instinct to save you in a precarious situation, plan and prepare with help from the survival pro who knows.

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